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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27220267">Bargaining</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bilbosama/pseuds/Bilbosama'>Bilbosama</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Bilbo Attempts Whumptober2020 [6]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Do not repost on another site, Game: Kingdom Hearts II, Gen, Greek Mythology References, References to Ancient Greek Religion &amp; Lore, Whumptober 2020, battle of hollow bastion au, do not copy to another site, no.19, prompt: broken hearts, reworking the underworld to make it fit kh3, wait when did max get his own kh tag</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 20:09:11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,301</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27220267</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bilbosama/pseuds/Bilbosama</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After the Battle of Hollow Bastion, two grieving teens pay Hades a visit.</p><p>A Whumptober2020 entry. Prompt: 19 - Broken Hearts | Grief | Mourning A Loved One</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Bilbo Attempts Whumptober2020 [6]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1952077</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Whumptober 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Bargaining</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Alrighty, this month I'm attempting the Whumptober challenge and uh, to be honest, I'm not sure if this fic is whumpy enough. I'll find out soon enough with a second opinion or three lol</p><p>(Then again, I just spent three days working on this so I'm most likely biased *shrugs* )</p><p>Anyway, this is an attempt on no.19: Broken Hearts (sub prompts: grief/mourning a loved one) but it works just as fine as an exercise into an idea we all probably had once during the Battle of Hollow Bastion segment in Kingdom Hearts 2: What if Goofy died? So, uh, here's my answer.</p><p>Warnings for: Past major character death, reworking of headcanons in the aftermath of KH3, questionable channeling of James Woods</p><p>Bargaining is a reference to a stage in the Kubler-Ross model of the stages of grief.</p><p>Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The underworld hadn't changed much since the last time Sora was there. It was still gloomy, still foggy in places, still foreboding.</p><p>It was like what he expected the realm of the dead to be like.</p><p>The only new change was that by the entrance was a sign announcing that the opening of the Underdrome has been postponed. In the distance across the river was an unlit stadium.</p><p>Auron was strangely absent.</p><p>Sora and his companion entered the large doors to their right that opened to a path leading to Hades himself. They lead to a large foyer-like room. Across the room, one of Cerberus' three heads rose from slumber after the doors slammed shut and noticed the two intruders. It sniffed loudly before deciding to go back to sleep.</p><p>That was fine with Sora, he didn't want to be delayed any further. The sooner they leave with their goal, the better.</p><p>The two out worlders carefully moved around Cerberus, not wanting to disturb him any further.</p><p>As they walked towards their destination, Sora reflected on the past week. The Battle of Hollow Bastion, the revelation of Kairi held captive in the Organization's stronghold, being cast out to…somewhere by Maleficent when Sora and Donald were just about to be overwhelmed, finding the odd box containing Roxas and the Twilight Town kids, finding themselves back in the gummi ship a few miles away from Hollow Bastion and receiving the message from His Majesty that…the body has been recovered and will be taken home, the funeral.</p><p>The funeral was the first time Sora met Max. Goofy had meant to introduce the two after Maleficent's attempted invasion but things got hectic when time travel got involved and the plan fell to the wayside.</p><p>Max was a few years older than Sora and, just like his father, had joined the King's Guard. Unlike his father, however, the young man did not solely rely on shields.</p><p>His father's funeral turned out to be a bigger deal than he or Sora expected. Goofy wasn't just a Captain of the King's Guard. He was a member of the Court, a dear friend of one of the greatest mages of his generation, a companion of a Keybearer (not Master to Sora's great disappointment but there was traditions to be upheld even if this corner of the Realm of Light barely had any Keyblade wielders these days), and, a year ago, had assisted in saving the Realm of Light from a mad man (or as it had recently turned out, a fragment of him). He died a hero when he pushed his king out of the path of a boulder.</p><p>The worst part wasn't the well-wishers passing their condolences, or the questions about being a Keyblade wielder mentioning things Sora hadn't even heard of, Cid and Leon being the only members of the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee to be free to come to the funeral, what appeared to be Pete in the distance watching with an unreadable expression but did nothing to disrupt the proceedings, or the fact that Goofy was dead and thus never got to see how it turned out.</p><p>The worst part was that Kairi and Riku weren't there. They didn't know Goofy like Sora did but it would've been nice to just be with them right now. And maybe they would have some advice as to what to do next.</p><p>The Organization has been using him to defeat Heartless so they can collect the hearts. How long has this been going on? Was it since he woke up or was it since he first arrived in Traverse Town a year ago with no idea what had happened to everyone in Destiny Islands?</p><p>He had no idea how to move forward from this. The Organization would never allow him to give up and nor will they stop watching his progress. And they will know. He was trapped and everyone involved knew it.</p><p>If Goofy were still here, he would've said something to cheer him up by now. Something that would've inspired him to break free of the paralyzing doubt he's beholden to.</p><p>And then it all changed when Max received a message from his friend PJ who got it from an alleged unknown source.</p><p>
  <em>Go to Hades.</em>
</p><p>He turned to Sora to see if he had any idea what it meant.</p><p>"Hades…" Sora repeated. It then dawned to him.</p><p>"That's it!" he said excitedly.</p><p>"What?" Max stared at him, confused.</p><p>"There's this world we," Sora briefly made a face at the word 'we' and Max knew who he meant, "sometimes go to for tournaments. One of my friends, Hercules, is always bothered by this guy named Hades. He rules the underworld there so…"</p><p>"So…?" Max prompted as the younger boy got more excited.</p><p>"He's the ruler of the dead!" Sora revealed, "We can get <em>him</em> back!"</p><p>Hope dawned in Max. They…they can get Dad back. It would be like he hadn't died.</p><p>"C'mon!" said Sora, "We gotta go!"</p><p>The two young men raced to the gummi ship hanger and grabbed the one they deemed the quickest. They spent the ensuing day it took to travel exchanging stories about Goofy.</p><p>And now they're in the Underworld, following the path Sora once went by memory. There was a couple of passages that they've went past. One smelled sweetly but at the same time felt foreboding (yet Sora felt drawn to that one but he forced himself to move past it – perhaps he can check it later when they were done). All they could hear was the sound of their footsteps, a distant wind, and their breathing. Occasionally little balls of light floated aimlessly into the walls.</p><p>"Strange," commented Sora as he nervously looked around when they reached a narrow path that went over a swirling green mass down below. On the other side of the chasm was an ominous column-like structure seemed to glow with a faint light at the top. Down at the foot of the tower was a pair of doors.</p><p>"What's wrong?"</p><p>"There's no Heartless this time," Sora observed before summoning the Keyblade, "no matter where I go, the Heartless will follow. They were here too."</p><p>"Maybe it's all the ghosts?" suggested Max.</p><p>"Ghosts?" Sora's grip on the Keyblade tightened as if he was preparing to slip into a battle stance.</p><p>"Aren't the ball things around here ghosts?" Max pointed to one floating near the ceiling. It paid no attention to the living visitors. "They aren't alive so they don't have hearts for Heartless to steal."</p><p>Sora blinked, "Huh." The Keyblade vanished from his hand in a flash of light.</p><p>They continued on the path and entered the stairway that lead to a circular room. It was lined with creepy decorations that reminded Max of bones. The hole in the center of the room wasn't any better. It was filled with the same yellow green light and…things that swirled around in it making a faint noise that reminds one of wailing.</p><p>A blue skinned man with white-blue fire burning on top his head lounged on his throne.</p><p>"Hey short stack," he greeted when he noticed Sora stepping forward.</p><p>"Hades, we gotta talk," said Sora sharply which made Max cringe.</p><p>"I'll say," Hades waved a hand, "the Fates aren't happy with what just transpired."</p><p>"They knew Goofy/my father died?" Sora and Max asked at the same time.</p><p>"Is that what just happened? Ah jeez, they could've been clearer about that," Hades groaned as he rubbed around his eyes. "Anyway, yeah, several pantheons worth of Fates are up in arms about the whole thing. I don't blame them what with the whole mess that Xehanort guy is creating. It's like Thanos all over again."</p><p>"Thanos?" Sora repeated.</p><p>Hades paced around the room shrugging dismissively, "Don't worry about that guy. That was an Age or two ago. Focus on this one, kids, because you're in it."</p><p>"My dad is important to the gods?" asked Max.</p><p>"Yeah because <em>unfortunately</em> he's one of the players who is supposed to show up at the Great Epic Showdown in like less than a year from now-"</p><p>"We've got less than a year to save the worlds?" gasped Sora.</p><p>"Probably?" Hades didn't seem concerned, "but this particular set of Fates here would be happy if you do because they've been waiting to snip Xehanort out for, like, years. And Erebus -"</p><p>"Is Dad here?" Max interrupted.</p><p>"Weeeeellllllllllll…" Hades drawled in a way that someone with more sense and self-preservation would pick up on the annoyed tone in his voice.</p><p>"Please, bring him back!" demanded Sora.</p><p>"He's gotta save the worlds! You said so!" Max added.</p><p>"No," was Hades' answer. Both boys stared at him in shock.</p><p>"Why not?!" Max cried out.</p><p>"Give him back, Hades!" The Keyblade rematerialized and Max's guard training would be screaming at the boy's form if Max hadn't gotten down to his hands and knees at Hades' feet.</p><p>"Max?!" The action distracted Sora enough for Hades to flick the boy to the ground.</p><p>Max scrunched his eyes shut and braced himself, "Please…I can't lose him yet…"</p><p>"If you two <strong>STOP INTERUPTING ME</strong>," Hades' skin and 'hair' flared red and Max caught the scent of smoke and fire, "you would have learned why by now!"</p><p>He held up a hand at Sora who cautiously sat up, rubbing his forehead, "Number one: Captain Goofy's soul is not here."</p><p>"What?!" both immediately froze as the God of the Dead glared.</p><p>"He's not anywhere near here. Not in Tartarus. Not in the Elysium Fields. Not even in the Asphodel Meadows. And definitely, not up in Mount Olympus. He hasn't popped up in this world at all. Which, admittedly, would have given him a second chance if he had kicked it within Thanatos' territory. And by the way," he crossed his arms in an 'X' shape, "do not bother the guy in charge of death. He's waaaaaay older than I am and-"</p><p>"I thought you were the God of Death," said a confused Sora.</p><p>"No, I'm God of THE dead. As in, the guy running the afterlife, sometimes with my smoking hot wife-"</p><p>"You're married?!" gasped Sora.</p><p>"Yes and <strong>IF YOU PUNKS INTERUPT ME ONE MORE TIME</strong>," Hades suddenly went very large and red before he suddenly shrunk with a calming breath, "you wouldn't get to know that Radiant Garden or Hollow Bastion or whatever the heck its being called now is not part of the territory. THEREFORE," he added loudly, "Goofy is not my subject. He's not here. Persephone, who is my wife and thus Queen of this place, didn't grant him rebirth. The guys up in Mount Olympus can't do anything about it (which is <em>hilarious</em> by the way) other than maybe make up a constellation for him."</p><p>"So…yeah, you kids are outta luck."</p><p>Max made a gasping noise and seemed to bend himself into a weeping ball in front of the unmoved god. Sora crawled over to Max, lips curling as he initially tried to keep himself from crying again, and hugged Max like he was hiding him from view as the dam burst in Sora.</p><p>They didn't notice Hades vanishing in a flash of flame.</p><p>After a while, Sora and Max shakily got up, brushed the dust off their clothes, waited for the pins and needles to subside, and retraced their steps back to the entrance.</p><p>They didn't speak of what transpired. There was, after all, nothing to be done about it.</p><p>Goofy was beyond their reach.</p><p>Pete was waiting by Cerberus. The three headed dog continued to snore, as if unbothered by Pete's hopeful presence.</p><p>"Did – " he began but was cut off by a shake of Max's head.</p><p>"Not our afterlife," said Max and Pete's ears laid flat on his head as he frowned deeply.</p><p>"Ah," Pete started before he sighed. He opened a dark pathway.</p><p>"Alright, I better see you pipsqueaks soon, y'hear?" he said loudly.</p><p>"Ugh, do we have to?" whined Sora.</p><p>"Well yeah, 'cause what kind of so called hero gives up, hmmm?" taunted Pete, "doubt the ole Captain would want that. He'd probably want you to keep helping folks or whatever."</p><p>Sora blinked as the words sunk in, "Yeah. He would, wouldn't he?"</p><p>"That sounds like Dad, alright," agreed Max.</p><p>"Great. Well, smell you later!" Pete ran into the portal which then closed.</p><p>As the two teens approached the exit to the Underworld, Max turned to Sora, "I think…I want to come with you. Can I?"</p><p>"Okay," said Sora before he frowned, "but don't you have to talk to somebody first though?"</p><p>"Huh?"</p><p>"Aren't you a soldier or something? Your, uh, boss probably won't be happy about it. I've seen what Shang was like when we got stuck in a cave-"</p><p>"Oh yeah, that. It'll be fine when I get it sorted out but once I do I can come!"</p><p>"Then it's settled. We – ack!" They emerged from the dark caverns and into the blinding sunlight. They flinched and shielded their eyes as they readjusted to seeing light after a long period of time in the darkness.</p><p>Then Donald cleared his throat.</p><p>"…Oh boy," muttered Sora before he chuckled nervously at the sight before him.</p><p>Donald and King Mickey were standing a few feet away, looking as they have been waiting outside for hours. Sora caught movement in the distance and spotted a figure in a dark coat freezing in place before they ran off as if a horde of Invisibles were chasing them.</p><p>Donald's tapping foot reminded Sora of a more pressing issue.</p><p>"Uh, hey, Donald. Your Majesty. What's up?"</p><p>Donald's scolding tirade, incomprehensible to those who haven't been around him long enough, could be heard for miles. It would be passed down as local legend for generations.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>1. I have no idea where Auron went. Maybe he's at the Underdrome or something.</p><p>2. Originally I had three ideas: two with Donald, one with Max. The Donald version would have ended with Donald or Sora promising to never tell anyone what they tried to do. Especially to Max. The other Donald one results in Hades summoning [Insert Character Here] to fill in the 3rd party member slot. In the end Team Max won because we need more Max (and angst).</p><p>3. I spent ten minutes staring at the wall once I realized that Donald and Goofy count as nobility. I still don't know what to do with this information.</p><p>4. The sweet smelling passageway was supposed to be a reference to Hypnos, god of sleep, who hangs out somewhere in the underworld and the entrance to his cave is surrounded by poppies. There's no light or sound in there.</p><p>5. Elysium, Asphodel Fields, and Tartarus are all part of the Greek underworld. Elysium is where demigods, classical mythological heroes, and later on, righteous people go to hang out once they die. Asphodel is where regular people go and Tartartus is where the titans and people who offended the gods in some way are punished.</p><p>6. 'Age' refers to the Ages of Man that mark stages of how people lived in Greek mythology. There's typically five but the Hercules movie in general runs wild with mythology so there could be an extra age or two before this one.</p><p>7. Pete was supposed to be around for like one line but he decided to hang around and vaguely inspire Sora back into his hero role.</p><p>8. I have this headcanon that Xehanort's shenanigans probably pissed off a lot of deities. Let's just say it's the only one that survived KH3 unscathed orz</p><p>9. To be honest, I don't know what weapon Max would fight with but its not a shield. *shrugs* Also I put down Max's age as 19 because why not I guess.</p><p>That's it for the notes. I have this vague follow up idea but I'll do that once Whumptober is over and I recover from attempting to write as many fics as I can.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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